8CN Exclusive: UFC vet Nick Pace gears up for GLORY 9

Fight Fans are familiar with MMA bantamweight Nick Pace from his stints with the UFC, Bellator, and WEC. The 26 year old Pace, who trains out of Tiger Schulmann Fight Team and fights out of Staten Island, forged a 6-3 record before splitting with the UFC in November of 2011. His raw athleticism has awed fans who remember him for holding the Ring of Combat bantamweight belt, Knocking out Collin Tebo with a flying knee for Bellator, going the distance with Demetrious Johnson in WEC, and three UFC octagon appearances.

Pace is re-tooled and amped to re-hit the combat sport world though on June 22nd as he faces Levan Makashvili in a featherweight kickboxing bout at GLORY 9 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. The 24 year old Makashvili, who also hails from NY City, has forged a 5-0 professional MMA record for regional promotions.

8CN’s Darren Barcomb tracked down Pace as he prepares for the bout and chatted about his career, future, and the prestige of fighting for the world’s premiere kickboxing promotion, GLORY.

On making his GLORY debut in his hometown of NY:

“It’s great. I have the home crowd here; a lot of people are going to come out to show their support. It’s right in my backyard, so it’s unbelievable.”

On the move from MMA to kickboxing:

“I’m looking to get back into MMA. After my last fight, I really evaluated myself, and I felt that I needed to work on my stand-up and get more confident in that area, so I’m doing this kickboxing fight. If things go well in this fight, and they want me to fight again, I’ll fight again.”

On his current training focus:

“I’m doing mostly kickboxing but I’m still working on Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling and cardio. Mostly I’ve been geared towards kickboxing because of the upcoming fight.”

On his plans for the upcoming year:

“I have Ring of Combat in my sights. I think I’m going to do a few fights for them. It’s a learning experience, and I have to do what have to do. The match maker at the UFC says I need a few more fights and prove myself to the UFC to get back in there again.”

On what is motivating him to win at GLORY 9:

“I’m just taking it one step at a time though; I’m not looking past Levan. I’m taking this fight very serious as if it’s the last fight I’m ever going to fight. I really need to prove to myself that I can get out there and tear it up.”

On how he spends his free time:

“I just like to relax, and spend time with my girlfriend Britney. She’s super supportive. Sometimes I like to shoot some pool, or hang out in the backyard. It’s mostly all about MMA. If I’m not training, I’m teaching. If I’m not teaching, I’m usually at a tournament. I teach seminars at different Tiger Schulmann schools. Along with training I have to put my effort into work to build myself and be established. “

His shout-outs and last words:

“I want to shout out to my mom, my dad, my brother, sisters, and my girlfriend Britney. I love you guys. Ti–Gear Fight Team…the best gear in the world. All my coaches, they help me do everything. The team at Tiger Schulmann and my people in Brooklyn.”